Windmill Brewery: Brouwerij 't IJ

If you ever happen to find yourself in Amsterdam on a sunny day, here's something I suggest you not miss: Rent a bike in the center of the city and take a little ride over to this cute windmill, which happens to also be a brewery! On nice days (even if it's cold) the place is packed with people. The inside is super small, so most people sit outside at their long picnic benches under a canopy of trees. They serve delicious beer (their Wit Beer is my favorite) and it's cheap, something I can't say about the rest of Amsterdam! And lastly, something to note, don't go on an empty stomach. They don't serve food! Well, unless you consider a plate full of mediocre cheese cubes food...

{Photos © Liz Denfeld Photography}

{Eagle Crest, Oregon}

I missed a couple posts last week so I thought I'd make up for it with a Sunday post! As I mentioned earlier, we spent our weekend back home in Eagle Crest, Oregon, which is in the Eastern part of the state. We stayed in a gorgeous rental house with our entire family. It was so much fun and the perfect opportunity to chill out and enjoy each other's company. We spent time lounging on the back deck, hiking, and just breathing in the fresh mountain air. I highly recommend Eagle Crest for a relaxing getaway if you're in the Pacific Northwest! Here are some photos from our stay.

{Photos © Liz Denfeld Photography}

{Forrest Family}

This past weekend was a beautiful one in Amsterdam. I got to take advantage of the stunning weather and photography the Forrest family right in the heart of Amsterdam. The light was perfect and their little boy is the cutest. To say I had a great time would be an understatement! Here are a few of my favorite snaps!

{Photos © Liz Denfeld Photography}

A Perfect Monday Morning

I'm feeling a bit burnt out this week, but trying to keep positive and be thankful for all the amazing little things around me. In fact, on Monday I happened to experience one of the best mornings I've had in quite a while. It made me extra happy to be living in Amsterdam and has kept me smiling all week. Here are a few things that made that morning super special:

+my first cappuccino from our new Nespresso machine. Holy heaven!

+ Watching the Today Show on my iPad as I got ready for the day. I almost forgot I was in Europe!

+Husband biking with me to the train station. Even though he does this every morning, Monday it felt even nicer since we hadn’t done it in a while.

+The dry, chilly weather. My hands and face were freezing but I couldn’t help but smile and laugh as I rode to the station. Sometimes I look around and just can’t believe I live here!

+Catching the sunrise as I biked into work. The light was so beautiful it made my heart jump out of my chest (and made me super bummed I didn’t have my camera on me!)

+And this didn't happen Monday morning, but it's still making me especially happy. Corey officially accepted an offer for a job in Europe last week! Yippee! Such a relief and so proud of him :)

{Corey snapped this on his iPhone Tuesday morning when we saw another pretty sunrise!}

O'Connor Wedding

Mitch is one of Corey's oldest and best friends. They go wayyy back. So when we found out we were moving to Amsterdam in August, and Mitch and his fiance were going to be getting married in October, we knew there'd be no way we would miss it. We booked our tickets before we even moved and it gave us something to look forward to on those days we were feeling especially homesick. 


Mitch and Kellie got married in gorgeous Eagle Crest, Oregon. It's in the central part of the state, which generally gets better weather in the summer and fall, and snow in the winter! They got lucky and had absolutely beautiful, warm sunny weather on their wedding day. My mom, mother-in-law, and I even went on a hike in the morning and I wore a tank top! It was lovely. 


The wedding was breathtaking, emotional and magical. We couldn't have been happier to be back in Oregon, celebrating this special day with all our friends (and family, too!). Congrats to our good friends, the O'Connors. We are wishing them a lifetime of love and happiness!

{Photos © Liz Denfeld}

P.S. I used Rent the Runway to rent this beautiful Mark & James by Badgley Mischka dress. It was such an easy process. Will definitely be doing it again!